- The 22-year-old Algerian Redouane Messaoud Dris was disqualified by the organizers of the Olympic Games
- He was scheduled to face Israeli fighter Tohar Butbul at the Paris Games on Monday
- Algerian Fethi Nourine was given a 10-year ban for refusing to fight Butbul
Israel is accusing an Algerian judoka of deliberately skipping the weigh-in to avoid having to fight his own judoka at the Paris Olympics.
Algerian Redouane Messaoud Dris, who was scheduled to fight Israeli fighter Tohar Butbul in the -73 kg category on Monday, was removed from the draw for exceeding the weight limit.
“Redouane Messaoud Dris is disqualified… Dris, registered for the men’s -73 kg event, failed the weigh-in. Therefore, his opponent will win the scheduled match by walkover,” the Olympic Games organizers confirmed in a statement on Sunday.
The Israeli Olympic Committee alleges that 22-year-old Dris deliberately failed to show up for the weigh-in to avoid his fight against Butbul.
“Tohar’s competitor has withdrawn from the competition,” a statement said.
Israel has accused disqualified Algerian fighter Redouane Messaoud Dris (above, in blue) of deliberately missing a weigh-in to avoid fighting their judoka Tohar Butbul at the Paris Olympics.
Butbul (above) was given a walkover after Dris missed the weight class in the men’s -73kg category
“The Israeli delegation will continue to fight with the Olympic values in mind. We believe that this kind of behavior has no place in the world of sport.”
Algerian judokas have a history of turning down Israeli athletes at the Olympics.
Algerian judoka Fethi Nourine was given a 10-year ban by the International Judo Federation in 2021 after he withdrew from the Tokyo Olympics to avoid a potential second-round fight with Butbul.
After his withdrawal, Nourine said it was impossible to fight Butbul because of his support for Palestine while their conflict with Israel continued.
In 2019, the International Judo Federation suspended Iran from international participation after judoka Saeid Mollaei revealed that he had been told to throw his semi-final match rather than risk facing an Israeli in the final.
Mollaei also said he was told to withdraw from the match earlier so that there would be no suspicion that he had thrown the match.
Algeria’s Fethi Nourine (above) was handed a 10-year ban by the International Judo Federation in 2021 after withdrawing from the Tokyo Olympics to avoid a potential fight with Butbul
He then said that he “cannot return” to his home country because he had spoken out. According to him, the Iranian media spread lies after the incident.
“That’s why I came to Germany after the World Cup, to recover and put what happened into perspective,” Mollaei said.
“If an athlete does not follow these orders, he and his family will 100 percent be in trouble. Even now, I still don’t know what my family’s situation is.”
